WELLFLEET – Ten cowboys rode into town as darkness enveloped Wellfleet about 6:30 p.m. on the great feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Dec. 12.
These 10 cowboys rode their faithful horses 12 miles in three hours, following a vehicle that carried the statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Guadalupe.
Another pickup with a great big horse trailer followed them on this pilgrimage of faith and devotion, to transport the horses home. The cowboys beamed with joy and contentment as they ascended the curved driveway that brought them to the south side of the St. William Church in Wellfleet. They had come to show faith, live devotion and ask for favors from the Most Holy Lady of Guadalupe on her day.
These 10 horsemen were accompanied by 19 more friends and family. The man who is the music leader – he plays the banjo and sings very well – informed me that the priest is to bless the horses and cowboys before they dismount. So I did, with great joy, with holy water on the heads of each cowboy and heads of each of their horses, and all the others present.
As the horses were loaded into the waiting trailer and I prepared for Holy Mass, we were joined by the pastor, Father Thomas Walsh, who concelebrated the Holy Mass and read the Gospel. Father Walsh blessed his people with great joy and they responded with great appreciation.
The dark night was filled with joy and confident faith as the songs and prayers filled the Wellfleet community and the Good Lord Jesus was made present on the historic Eucharistic Altar of Sacrifice.
Memories of home, of horse and cowboy processions, mariachis and firecrackers filled the hearts of these men and women, so far from family and the soil of their childhood. They came eager to make this, their new home, a consecrated space where the Catholic faith and joyful devotion to the Mother of God, Mary of Guadalupe, is celebrated. After due worship was rendered unto heaven’s God and His marvelous works were praised, and blessings of the newly donated statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe and all the faithful were offered, those present continued to the church hall. There they had cinnamon punch, “Atole” and rice, beans and salads, accompanied by the best tamales ever made this side of Mexico.
From the aroma of the flowers that adorned the altar that night, and the great food, to the fragrance of the horses’ lather and the leather saddles and chaps, it was a glorious night that treated the senses of this old farm boy and filled my heart with hope. I wish all of you could have experienced this with the faithful cowboys and their families gathered around the Great God of Heaven and mother Mary of all the earth.
The Catholic communities in Wallace, Benkelman, Wauneta, Smithfield and McCook have shone brightly these days, celebrating Advent, the Immaculate Conception, Guadalupe, a novena to Christmas – posadas – and Saint Juan Diego! Continue to pray for us in these “out of the way” places in our Lincoln Diocese, because you would be surprised at the greatness of faith that God lovingly nourishes in His land.
Father Lorenz, in residence at St Patrick Parish in Imperial, is the director of Hispanic ministry in the western part of the Diocese of Lincoln
